


To Embrace and Accept

by alrangerz



Category: Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six (Video Games)
Genre: Acceptance, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Arguing, Coming Out, Engagement, F/F, Family Bonding, Family Fluff, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Meeting the Parents, Mild Language, Suggestive Themes, technically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:26:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23633071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alrangerz/pseuds/alrangerz
Summary: Taina and Meghan have a fight that could put a strain on their relationship, but after Taina visits her family back home, she is faced with the choices to make and is given a second chance.Meanwhile, Meghan might just have a surprise up her sleeve.
Relationships: Meghan "Valkyrie" Castellano/Taina "Caveira" Pereira
Comments: 4
Kudos: 44





	To Embrace and Accept

**Author's Note:**

> I started this last year and it was me trying to write out my feelings about coming out, but I was like "No reason to finish it at this point." Recently I looked over it and I was like "Yeah I want to finish this. I want to share this with my readers."
> 
> So I went back to my first R6S otp

“Taina,” she says softly to get her attention. Taina looked up from the newspaper in her hands and turned to her _avó_ , wondering if the old woman had been asking her something prior.

“ _Desculpe, vovó._ I was looking at the deals,” she replied when she was given a look. Taina knew that look, and it was one she only received. Not her siblings, not her mother. It was always a silent question, asking if everything was alright. It was often lately that she was given the look, but what reason for, was the question on Taina’s mind.

“It is okay. I was just letting you know that your phone was ringing again. Maybe it is important.”

The young Brazilian woman grabbed her phone from her side pocket and checked her notifications. Eight missed calls from two people. Emmanuelle and Meghan.

“Just scam calls it seems. Let's get back to shopping, shall we?” She put her phone on Do Not Disturb and placed it back in her pocket.

They returned to their list of groceries, buying everything they needed. Taina helped load and unload the cart when needed, and she even offered to pay for everything. Her grandmother was insistent on paying, but before she could continue, Taina was already handing her money to the cashier. “Don’t worry, I got it covered,” she started as they left the store. “I’m rarely home so it’s nice to provide for the family when I can.”

It was rare for Harry to let team Rainbow have enough time off to visit their families in their respective countries, so whenever Taina was able to, she’d visit her few brothers and mother, making sure to spend time with her grandmother as well. She always made sure they had everything they needed, or wanted.

When Taina returned home with her grandmother, Rute, she made sure the older woman was comfortable in the living room before she went to the kitchen to put all the groceries away. As soon as she finished putting all of the stuff away, she sat atop the counter and took out her phone, face scrunching up when she saw the amount of messages and missed calls she had. She sighed and took her phone off of DND, swiping the screen until she pulled up Emmanuelle’s number. She hesitated pressing the call button, but she opted to just get the conversation over with.

_“Well it’s nice of you to finally call me back.”_

Taina picked at the fabric of her jeans as she searched for a response. “I’m sorry...I just...I don’t know what to say to her…”

_“I don’t know, Tai. Maybe apologize and tell her you love her? Shit, maybe tell your family you’re getting married?”_

Her light brown eyes watered as she thought about the argument she had with her fiancée earlier that week, the night before Harry told them they could have time off.

“Em, you know I can’t tell them...especially my grandma. All she’s ever wanted was for me to find a nice man, have kids, but no all she has is a lesbian granddaughter who can’t even stand the thought of children...” Her urge to cry became harder to control as she played through the memory of her yelling at Meghan.

* * *

_“Do you ever think about having kids after we get married?”_

_The question caught Taina off guard, yes, but her answer was quick and firm. “No. I don’t particularly like kids, never wanted any.” She returned to cleaning her knife, something she normally did when she had a lot on her mind._

_“I mean, I know our job is dangerous, maybe that’s a factor in your decision?” Meghan pressed on, hoping to get her to at least think about it. The older woman loved children, always wanted one of her own, and when she said yes to Taina a few months back, she thought her wishes would finally come true._

_“No, it’s not. If I wanted to spend money to care for something, it’d be a fish. Not a human. Are we done talking about this?”_

_It wasn’t the fact that she didn’t want kids that made Meghan red in the face, no. It was Taina’s tone. She seemed irritated and Meghan felt like she had no right to be irritated. She had done nothing._

_“What the fuck is your problem? I’m just trying to have a conversation about our future with you, and you’re getting angry?”_

_“Yeah, because you keep bringing it up. Just fucking drop it; I don’t want kids. End of conversation.”_

_“My fucking bad, princess.” Meghan pulled the covers off of her and slipped to the edge of the bed to pick up her boy shorts and sports bra from the floor. “You know, I thought you keeping me from your family would hurt, but having you talk to me that way just makes it worse. We should take some time away from one another.”_

_Taina chuckled and put down her knife. She knew she’d regret the words as soon as they left her mouth, but she couldn’t hold her tongue. “Yeah, because Meghan J. Castellano only knows how to run away from a problem instead of trying to assess it. You never take things into consideration unless it involves you.”_

_“Oh here we go. All I did was ask if you wanted kids, you decided to get loud and cussed for no reason, so I’m thinking maybe we should take time for ourselves. I’m taking everything into consideration. Maybe it’s me who has issues, who the hell knows. Goodbye, Taina.”_

_Before Taina could come up with a response, Meghan grabbed her clothes and left the room, leaving her alone once again._

* * *

_“Tai, have you even thought about telling anyone in your family?”_

“Tell them what? Emma, we’ve been over this already...look, I’ll come out before I return to base. That way I can find out if it’s safe to introduce Meghan to them. Can we drop the conversation now?” Taina pinched the bridge of her nose and grit her teeth, an attempt to stop her emotions from getting the best of her. “I love her, and the last thing I want is for us to fall apart now. I just...I don’t think I could ever want the same things she wants, and I don’t think it’s something she wants to live without.”

_“Well, you’ll never know until you talk to her. I’ll tell her you need more time, but I can only prolong this so much, Tai.”_

“I know. Hey, thanks, and I’ll talk to you later. Bye, Em.”

_“Bye.”_

Taina sighed as she hung up the call and set her phone on the counter. She hung her head and placed her hands on her knees, closing her eyes as she tried to clear her head.

“Taina?”

Her grandmother’s soft voice sounded from the doorway of the kitchen, pulling Taina from her thoughts. “Yes?”

“What troubles you? You know you can talk to me, right?”

Those words made Taina wince. She could talk to her grandmother about anything in the world and the old woman would answer with a soft smile and the sweetest voice imaginable. “I know. I just...I don’t think this is something we can talk about…”

Her grandmother walked up to her and gently cradled her face in shaky hands. “ _Querida_ , is this about that Meghan girl?”

Taina furrowed her brow in confusion and lifted her head to look at her grandmother. “What did you say?”

“Taina, it’s okay. We all know. We’ve known for awhile now.” The older woman smiled softly and pulled Taina’s head against her shoulder to comfort her.

“But...how?”

“You keep a photo of you two in your wallet and we always see it when you go to pay for something. She’s beautiful. And whoever took the picture had a good angle.” Rute pulled back and wiped the tears from her granddaughter’s face and kissed her forehead.

To say Taina was grateful was an understatement. Never in her life had she thought her family would accept her for herself, but here was her grandmother telling her it was going to be okay. The photo in her wallet was one that Emmanuelle took a few months ago during New Year’s. They had been messing with the sparklers and when Taina handed hers off to another operator, Meghan hopped into the Brazilian woman’s arms, wrapping her limbs around the younger woman. As soon as the countdown to the New Year hit one, they shared a passionate kiss, a moment that Emmanuelle captured perfectly. “Can I show you my favorite photo of her?”

Rute nodded and gestured for Taina to hop off the counter so she could set some tea. “Of course. I would also like to know how you two met.”

“Okay, but first,” she started as she started swiping through her photo gallery. “This one is my favorite because it’s just her being at peace with the world.” She gave Rute the phone and crossed her arms as she leaned against the kitchen counter. The photo was of Meghan sitting on the bed with a book in hand, completely relaxed.

“Wow, she is very beautiful. Where’d you find her?”

“Well we actually work together. She is from America and she is part of the Navy SEALs. We met when I got into Rainbow. It’s funny because I only knew Vicente at the time and Meghan and I hated one another. One time we got into a fight and she punched me in the face. I think it was at that moment that I realized how much I actually liked her. I had been so upset with both of us because I’ve never experienced what I was feeling. Yet, she somehow knocked some sense into me.”

“I see. So, you will be having kids, yes? They will be very beautiful children between you both.” Rute returned the device and gave Taina another smile. She was so proud of the young woman and seeing her face brighten at the mention of Meghan. Yet she also noticed the pained look on her face when the subject of children came up. “Why do you look sad?

Sad wasn’t even the correct word at this point, was it? “ _Avozinha,_ the truth is...The reason I’ve been moping around is because she wants kids...we had a bad argument and it was my fault. I snapped at her and it’s because I told her I didn’t want kids. I hurt her, and I cannot forgive myself right now.”

Rute pursed her lips and turned down the heat of the stove. “Taina, just because you don’t want kids doesn’t mean you can’t work this out. Have you spoken to her since?”

The Rainbow operative shook her head. “Unfortunately no, and to make matters worse...I should have said something earlier about this, but we’re getting married soon.”

Silence fell over them like a thick blanket, neither saying anything in fear of it being the wrong thing. Taina could see the hurt look on her grandmother’s face, and suddenly she felt terrible. “ _Avó_ …”

“When are you getting married,” the smaller woman asked quietly.

“I don’t really know. We haven’t really had a chance to discuss it. Shit, we might not even have a ceremony…” The brunette sighed shakily and sat down at the nearby table, placing her head in her heads. She expected disappointment, disgust, anything but what her grandmother said next.

“Well, you two better pick a date because your brothers and your mother will be helping you ladies pay for it. I will do my best as well. We only ask that you bring her around more and to send us invitations. Now, go on and go call her. You have some apologizing to do. I will call your mother and brothers to let them know the good news!” Rute turned off the stove and shuffled out of the kitchen to find herself in the living room to use the house phone.

Meanwhile, Taina took out her phone and pulled up Meghan’s contact. She hesitated for a few seconds before she pressed the call button and got up to walk outside. As she waited for the other woman to pick up, she sat herself outside on the front porch.

_“Hello?”_

“Meghan? It’s me.”

The line was silent for a long time before Taina heard a shaky breath and the clearing of a throat.

_“Hey. I’ve been trying to reach you. Is everything okay?”_

Taina nodded to herself and answered with a quiet “yes”. “Look, Meg, I wanted to apologize for the other night. I know an apology won’t make up for how I treated you, but I love you and I don’t want to lose you. I also wanted to let you know that my family has decided to help us with a wedding if you want one. Only if they get invitations.” She said the last part jokingly, but as they continued in an awkward silence, Taina was starting to get anxious. “Meghan-“

_“Can we talk later? Something just came up and I have to go. I promise we’ll talk later, Tai. I love you.”_

_I love you._ Three words Taina was glad to still hear, but she didn’t exactly like the suddenness of Meghan’s departure. “Yeah, sure. Love you too.” She removed the phone from her ear and gripped it tightly in her hands. _You fucked up. Why can’t you just be normal and handle things correctly?_

_Because I’m not normal…_

She grit her teeth and hung her head, finally letting her emotions take over. Tears began falling down her cheeks and her body began to shake as she sobbed into her arms. All she wanted was to live a happy, easy life with her best friend, her future wife. Then again, when was life ever easy for someone of her expertise? She lifted her head and tried to calm herself by taking a deep breath and rubbing her face gently.

“ _Irmã_ , _avó_ said you’d be out here. Penny for your thoughts?”

Taina looked over to see her eldest brother standing on the porch steps, a sad smile on his face, and a bag of items in hand. He walked over to her and sat down beside her, pulling her into a tight hug in which she returned with little hesitation. It felt nice to be in her sibling’s embrace once more. For some reason she always thought her eldest brother gave the best hugs.

“Hi, Luiz.”

“Hello, Taina.” He pulled away from her and gently wiped the few tears off of her cheeks. “Why are you crying? I assumed you couldn’t do that anymore after becoming a badass military operative.”

She let out a small laugh when he puffed out his chest and waddled around.

“Has _vovó_ told you?”

Luiz sat back down and shook his head. He looked a little concerned, but he nodded, letting her know she could tell him.

Taina took in a shaky breath and stared at her boots, wringing her hands nervously as she tried to think of how to relay her news of marriage. “Have you ever seen the photo in my wallet? The one that apparently everyone has seen whenever I pay for something?”

“Not that I can recall? Is it a baby photo? Do you have a boyfriend now,” Luiz asked excitedly, a giant grin forming on his face. His excitement made Taina feel a little bad, but it was now or never.

“Not exactly, Lu. I, uh, I’m getting married, but not to a man…” The last few words were mumbled, but it was still loud enough for Luiz to hear. A soft “oh” was his response followed by silence. He rubbed the back of his neck and stood up from his seat, facing towards the door. The action alone was enough to make Taina’s heart drop, but when Luiz turned around and held his arms out, she suddenly felt overwhelmed.

“Come on, come here and let me hug you.”

She nodded quickly and hopped up from her chair, hugging Luiz once again. The embrace felt more secure than earlier and maybe it was just the bit of weight she shrugged off of her shoulders.

“Taina, you are my sister and nothing will ever change that. I’m proud of you for coming out to me and I wish you both nothing but happiness for the rest of your lives. I will always love you no matter what, shit you could tell me you want to be a boy and I’d still love you.” His declaration was accompanied by a hearty laugh and a kiss to the top of Taina’s head.

“ _Crianças_ , come in right quick. The tea is done,” Rute called from the front door.

Both grandchildren looked over at their grandmother and followed her inside. “Where is _mamãe_ and João?”

Rute gestured for them to sit on the sofa and shuffled back to the kitchen, only to return moments later with a tray that held the mugs and the tea kettle. “They will be here soon. They had to go run a few errands. They told me to let you know not to leave until they get here.”

Luiz sat back and thanked Rute for the tea. “I see. Well, I am not going anywhere any time soon. Taina is here and I have so many questions for her.”  
  
“Now, now. I will answer them, let me just drink grandma’s lovely tea.”

Luiz laughed and followed his little sister’s actions and took a long sip of tea.

* * *

When they were finished they spent the next few hours talking and laughing about everything and anything. The older man excused himself and offered to take the cups and tray to the kitchen. His grandmother thanked him and sat down beside Taina before she turned on the television.

“You still watch this channel? I didn’t know they still gave it.”

“Ah, yeah. It’s mostly old episodes and news, but it reminds me of the older days.”

Before she could continue reminiscing, there was a light tapping on the front door. Taina excused herself and got up to answer the door. When she opened it, she was greeted with the lovely face of her mother and her younger brother, João. “Oh jeez, hey guys! I missed you guys so much.” She pulled her mother into a hug and pressed a kiss to her cheek. After she let go, she approached her brother and performed their secret handshake, ending it with a fist bump. “Hey, asshole.”

João rolled his eyes and lifted up the bag in his hand. “I brought queijadinhas. Your favorite dessert, and we may have one more surprise for you. Close your eyes for this one.”

Taina raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, cocking a hip out as she gave her brother a questioning look. “You’re not going to stab me, are you?”  
  
“Goodness, no. At least not in front of _mamãe._ Just...just close your eyes, and trust us.”

The younger woman sighed in defeat and closed her eyes, covering them with her eyes for good measure.

Meanwhile, João gave his mother the box of sweets and quietly walked down the porch steps and towards his car. He opened the door for the person inside and escorted them towards Taina where they nodded and quietly stood in front of her. For a moment no one spoke and Taina was starting to get antsy.

“Go ahead and open your eyes, _minha filha.”_

As instructed, Taina uncovered her face and opened her eyes.

“Hey, babe.”

Meghan was standing before her in a pair of jeans, a simple t-shirt, and one of Taina’s leather jackets. She even had on one of her BOPE caps.

Taina just stood there frozen and wide eyed, heart racing as her stomach began turning.

“Kind of thought you’d be a little more excited to see me…Uh, with all due respect, ma’am,” Meghan started as she looked over at Maria. “Can we have a quick moment?”

João nodded for his mother and ushered her inside despite the older woman’s protests. Now that they were alone, Meghan slowly reached out and guided Taina to the chairs on the porch.

“You flew out here for what reason?”

Ouch. Meghan winced at the tone of her voice, but she knew she owed Taina an explanation. “I came to visit you. I was already at the airport before you called me, and when you told me you came out to your grandmother, I called your brother and since they were already out running errands, they picked me up.”

Taina shook her head and furrowed her brow. “That doesn’t answer the question. Why were you even out here? I thought you were upset with me, and you said we needed time away from one another.”

Meghan nodded and leaned forward, placing her elbows on her thighs. “I did say that, and I had my time to think, and I was going to come surprise you and take you out. We were gonna go to that favorite restaurant you always tell me about. Maybe even visit the beach, and I was willing to do it all in secret. Though, I do want to mention that your mother already seemed to know about us.”

A chuckle was the response to the blonde’s confused statement. “My grandmother called some people and told them right after I told her. Apparently that photo of us in my wallet got me caught. They’ve known for awhile.”

A photo? That was news to Meghan and suddenly she was curious. “You have a photo of us in your wallet? Which one?”

Taina pulled her wallet out and flipped it open, handing it over to Meghan. “One of my favorite ones.”

Meghan gasped when she realized the significance of the photo. “You proposed to me that following evening at dinner. I didn’t even realize you had this photo…”

“Like I said, it’s one of my favorites.”

Meghan couldn’t help but stare at the photo a few seconds longer before she gave the wallet back and turned to Taina to gently cup her chin in one hand. The Brazilian woman turned her head out of instinct and closed her eyes when the blonde leaned forward, yet the kiss she’d been waiting for never came.

“Meghan?”

“Can we talk about the other night?”

There it was. The one thing Taina was hoping they could avoid for a few more, but Meghan was right. Better sooner than later.

“Yeah, sure. Before we do, let’s go inside, up to my old room. It’s getting a little warm out here.” She stood up from the chair and held her hand out to her fianceé, smiling softly when the American woman took it without hesitation. They walked into the home and greeted everyone who had been sitting in the living room.

Luiz pushed past João and walked up to Meghan and pulled her into a hug. “Oh, it is so nice to finally meet you! You just be Meghan.” He pulled away from the blonde and apologized for jumping her the first chance he had. “All I have to say is that she has good taste from what I’ve heard and I’m glad you punched her that one...time…” His voice trailed off when he glanced over at Taina. She was gesturing for him to hurry up and finish talking. “...and it was a pleasure to meet you. You two play nice now, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

The eldest Pereira sibling winked at them and let them go on their way. Taina pulled Meghan along towards the kitchen where Rute was standing near the stove, stirring sauce in a pot. “ _Avó,_ this is my fianceé, babe this is my grandmother, Rute.” She placed her hand on the small of Meghan’s back, gently pushing her forward.

Rute shuffled towards Meghan and hugged her gently. Meghan returned the embrace wholeheartedly. “Ah, no need to call me Rute, you can call me _vovó_. Especially since I am going to be your grandmother soon. Now, I am making dinner, it will be done in about an hour. Taina, _carinho_ , why don’t you take your wife around the home and show her around?”

Taina blushed when Rute called Meghan her wife, but she just nodded and started back out of the kitchen, making sure Meghan was following her along the way. Within minutes they were down the hall and right outside of Taina’s room.

Upon entering the room, Meghan noticed how simple it was. A perfectly made bed sat in the far left corner of the room with the closet right beside it. There was a wooden dresser on the right side with a small TV on top of it. There was a Brazilian flag hanging on the wall right beside a BOPE banner.

“This is very like you, babe. You even have a skull from Mexico here, wow.” Meghan picked up the blue painted skull. She flipped it over only to see Taina’s initials on the bottom.

Said woman sat on her bed and crossed her legs under her and leaned back on her hands. “So, you wanted us to talk?”

“Yes. I’ve been thinking, and maybe we don’t have to have kids to be happy. I want us to work, I know we can do it.” Meghan crawled onto the bed and into the younger woman’s lap, casually draping her arms over her shoulders.

Taina hummed and wrapped her arms around the blonde’s waist, keeping her close. “You’re right, but I want to apologize, like really apologize for being an asshole towards you. You didn’t deserve it and I’m sorry. If I’m honest, the thought of having kids scares me. What if I mess up? What if I’m not a good mother? All I know is war and violence…” She frowned and pressed her forehead against Meghan’s shoulder. “What if something happens and it’s all my fault?”

“Hey, hey, no, no. Nothing like that is going to happen. You’re going to be a fantastic mother. Our kids will love you so much, just as much as I do. They’re going to look at you and stand proud saying, ‘That’s my mom and she’s a badass.’ You’re going to do fine, and I will be there every step of the way, ya hear?” By now, Meghan was holding Taina’s face in her hands, staring deep into those beautiful greenish brown eyes. The color was always so mesmerizing. She sat there for a few moments before she leaned forward and pressed her lips against her fianceé’s, sighing in content when it was returned.

They continued kissing even after Taina moved them around to lay Meghan on her back for comfort. As soon as she felt the cool sheets against her back, Meghan wrapped her legs around Taina’s waist, keeping her close and moaning into the kiss.

“Taina, Meghan, dinner is almost- oh my god, I’m so sorry!” Luiz shielded his eyes and quickly closed the door, the sound of his footsteps echoing down the hall.

Taina’s face was on fire and it wasn’t helping that Meghan was crying from laughing so hard. The younger woman hid her face in the crook of the blonde’s neck and groaned out of embarrassment. “I hate you right now.”

“No you don’t, my love. Now, get off of me before someone else walks in on us, and I’m sure the last you want is for Dengoso to make jokes.”

“Ugh, fine, but I will be making you mine tonight, Meghan J. Castellano. I love you so fucking much, Meghan.”

“I’m sure you will, Miss Pereira. I’ll hold you to it, and if we’re being honest: I fucking love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Y'all know the deal. Feedback and constructive criticism is always appreciated!


End file.
